Can you breastfeed after breast cancer? A survivor and doctors share how it can be done safely

FACING BREAST CANCER WHILE BREASTFEEDING

There are different types of breast cancer treatments, Dr Ang said. 

Your doctor may recommend a lumpectomy (removing part of the breast) or mastectomy (removing the entire breast).

You can also undergo radiation therapy (also called radiotherapy), where high-energy rays are used to kill cancer cells and shrink tumours.

There are also systemic therapies using drugs: Chemotherapy destroys or shrinks cancer cells, hormone therapy blocks the hormones that help cancer cells grow, and immunotherapy stimulates the body’s immune system to recognise and attack cancer cells.

“For women who have not started cancer treatment, it is usually safe to continue breastfeeding,” said Dr Lee Wai Peng, senior consultant and breast surgeon at Solis Breast Care & Surgery Centre.

“It’s a myth that breast cancer can pass through breast milk,” she added.

Dr Mythili Pandi, a lactation consultant, family physician and the director of Mother & Child pregnancy care centre, said that mothers who undergo a lumpectomy can continue breastfeeding if the affected breast can still produce milk, while those who have had a single mastectomy can usually nurse from their unaffected breast.

One of Dr Mythili’s patients was a mother with a six-month-old baby who found a lump in her breast that persisted despite fully expressing her milk. The patient was referred to a breast centre, where she underwent an ultrasound biopsy and was advised to have a lumpectomy.

“It was a very distressing episode for the new mum, but she was still able to breastfeed from both breasts after everything she went through, and stopped only when it became emotionally stressful for her,” said Dr Mythili.